The Accidental Discovery
by bigbangenthusiast
Summary: Amy discovers some embarrassing events from Sheldon's past.


**A/N: Hi everyone. I am slowly trying to catch up on the lovely prompts in my queue. Here's one from Riah Alice Drake. I hope you enjoy!**

Amy propped her feet up on the couch and sighed contentedly. Comic book night meant quality time alone for a couple of hours.

She took a sip from her wine glass then picked up her worn copy of The Canterbury Tales. Years of rereading resulted in rips and tears of the cover and pages, but each mini story still brought her joy. Only tonight, as she turned the pages, even her favorite, The Miller's Tale, couldn't captivate her attention.

After reading the same paragraph three times, she set the book on the coffee table. Okay, reading was out tonight, but there were plenty of other things she could do. Perhaps a bubble bath? Though tempting, the calming properties of the lavender-scented bubbles would likely induce sleep. It was a little too early for that. There were always chores, but she didn't want to waste this precious time doing something so boring.

"Think, Fowler," she muttered.

Her eyes scanned the tiny apartment, finally falling on her laptop. Research, games, and social media were just a few of the activities waiting for her. She dismissed research right away. This was supposed to be a relaxing evening.

Games didn't really hold her interest. Even Candy Crush was just something she played to pass the time on long plane rides. There was Facebook, but she was all caught up on her friends' lives and didn't care to see what her old college and high school classmates were up to. Instagram was just another version of that. Email sorting was an ongoing issue, but that kind of fell under the chores category. What other forms of entertainment awaited her?

She flipped up the lid and typed 'fun things to do online when bored'. Not surprisingly, Google offered numerous lists compiled, most likely, by other bored people. She skimmed through the items, quickly dismissing them until she came across one worth her time - watching funny videos. Another search rewarded her with links to some of YouTube's most hilarious clips.

Amy leaned back and watched cats get spooked by popping balloons, children innocently saying inappropriate things, and skateboarding tricks gone wrong. She laughed a few times, but mostly she felt sorry for the misfortunes of the people and animals.

Going back to one of the truly funny videos, she clicked one in the 'Up Next' column, hoping it would be a similar type of humor. The first one didn't disappoint. It felt so good to just laugh at something so mindless after the stress of the hard work that went into the Nobel project.

As the next clip loaded, Amy's eyes were drawn to the title. The preview simply stated 'Physicists Gone Wild'. Whatever it was might be good stress relief for Sheldon too.

The title slide faded away, and Amy blinked at the footage that followed. Younger versions of Sheldon and Leonard appeared. They were fighting and not just with words but physically fighting. An audible gasp escaped her lips as her husband and friend rolled on the ground, attacking each other with flailing arms. Like a train wreck, it was horrific to watch yet impossible to look away.

The whole ordeal was over in a matter of minutes, and she replayed the video. This time she paused it to closer examine her husband's narrowed eyes and hard-set mouth. He wasn't just angry; he was livid, and it was probably over something really silly. She wondered what was going through the minds of the audience and hoped there were no new grads in attendance regretting their choice of profession. What an embarrassment to the university.

When the video reached the end, she didn't replay it. Twice was more than enough. Now for some real comedy again. Only the next video's title did not sound promising. She braced herself for 'Physicist Melts Down'.

"Please don't let this one star Sheldon," she muttered then sighed as his face filled the screen. What kind of trouble did he get himself into this time? He stumbled onto a stage with a bottle of wine. This was going to be bad.

"Oh, Sheldon, what did you do?"

Amy cringed as he took his place behind a podium advertising the event - The Chancellor's Award. She knew he won back in 2010, shortly before they met. While he was eager to gloat about the award, she realized he hadn't once discussed the ceremony. Now she was beginning to see why.

His attempt at humor with science-related jokes was met with silence. She chuckled at the one about the neutron in the bar, but it was the only thing funny about the scenario. The jabs at the geologists were distasteful but expected, and it only got worse from there. There was a time and place for The Elements Song, but a prestigious award ceremony was not one of them. If only he had left the stage then.

The crazy look in her husband's eyes intensified as he described a universe with four dimensions where one could remove their pants over their heads.

"Don't do it!" She yelled at the screen, when he reached for his zipper.

Too late. Her cheeks reddened as his pants dropped to the ground, in the presence of his peers and dignitaries. And it didn't end there. Before she could process what was happening, he discarded his underwear and bent over to present them all with his bare bottom. Gasps and shrieks erupted from the audience with a few uncomfortable snickers.

Amy covered her eyes with her hand and peeked through her fingers. How had the university not fired him after that stunt? Her eyes were still glued to the screen when a key turned in the lock.

"Did you have an enjoyable evening?" Sheldon asked, as her kissed her cheek.

Amy hit the pause button and licked her lips. "It was… enlightening."

"Excellent! Are you starting a new research project?" He rounded the corner to look at her screen then inhaled sharply. "This is your idea of enlightenment?"

She squirmed under his glare. "No. I… I just had no idea these videos existed. You never told me…"

He shut the lid and glared at her. "I never told you because this was humiliating. You were never supposed to find out."

"It's not like I purposely was looking for videos of you. I stumbled upon it while looking for something funny to watch. When I saw the title of the first one, I never dreamed you were involved. I thought it might be something you'd enjoy."

"The first one? You found more than one video of me?"

She nodded. "It was of you and Leonard fighting at a topical conference on Bowes-Einstein condensates."

"Oh, dear Lord! So you did search for videos of me."

She watched him pace behind the couch, wringing his hands. "I swear I didn't. The second one started up after the first. I wasn't really expecting to see another one starring you."

Sheldon took a seat next to her. "You're probably wishing you didn't marry me after watching me make such an A of myself."

"This doesn't change the way I feel about you. We've both done embarrassing things. Besides, you were a different person back then. Comparing these incidents to your speech at the Nobel ceremony is like night and day. You made me so proud."

"We both know that wasn't my original speech."

"I know, but all that matters is what did happen. It was beautiful, Sheldon. I had never been prouder to be your wife."

"I have you to thank for that. Finding out that my own wife only tolerated me was really painful to hear."

"I never should have said that."

He smiled sadly, as he took her hands in his. "I'm glad you did. I've always known I haven't been the best friend or husband, and that was the push I needed to try harder. I want to be the man you deserve."

She squeezed his hands. "I know. I love you."

"I love you too."

They settled back against the couch, fingers entwined. Sitting quietly with her husband was one of the best feelings in the world. She wanted to just enjoy his presence, but there was something gnawing at her mind. "Are there any other incidents I should know about?"

"None caught on video that I'm aware of."

Now her curiosity was piqued. "But there were other times?"

"Can we not discuss this now?"

"Okay, but I'm not letting this go. You don't have to hold back from me because I'll still love you no matter what."

Sheldon's lips descended upon hers, and she eagerly reciprocated. He had his quirks and had done some humiliating things, but she knew what she was getting herself into when she married him. And she wouldn't want it any other way.


End file.
